Month: July 2013

This has been a very enjoyable project, in particular working with a grade 3 class from Britannia Elementary. As I have said in a previous post these kids are so much fun and so into the potatoes. It is just so great seeing kids get so excited about food. It makes me feel like the work we are doing really does matter.

With financial support from the Neighbourhood Matching Fund the Britannia Potato Farm was conceived of for a number of reasons. On one level it is providing a much needed greening of the area using playful and educational food security strategies. More importantly it has provided the opportunity to engage children in a real life hands on food growing project. The kids helped shovel the dirt, plant the potatoes, mound the potatoes, water, decorate the boxes, and will in the fall dig up the potatoes and finally cook and eat them. I am sure the best part of the project will be when the kids go wild digging up the spuds, like searching for buried treasure.

This demonstration urban agriculture project has already captured a lot of attention. Situated at Britannia Community Centre, it is helping us all better connect with our food. For many of the kids, growing these potatoes has been a new and exciting experience for which they are talking a lot about.

Stay tuned for a big potato bake off coming this fall at Britannia Elementary.

On July 18, the Westside Mobile Food Market will be rolling out for the first time. This project is the culmination of years of work on the Westside of Vancouver to raise the awareness of and take action on food system – particularly access – inadequacies in this community.

The mobile market is a joint effort of The South Granville Seniors Centre and The Westside Food Collaborative. This one-year pilot project will assist seniors and other vulnerable people living on Vancouver’s Westside in “food deserts” — zones with few or no grocery stores or produce stands.

To kick off the mobile market’s first season, the “The Plenty Campaign” (in support of the Westside Mobile Food Market) will raise awareness for Westside seniors experiencing food insecurity. The public will be invited to show their support by signing a community pledge — online or at Vancouver Farmers’ Markets and various other community events.

I was wondering if you were able to share the news — along with an appeal to sign the pledge — in your: newsletter, blog posts, email updates to supporters/staff/your internal networks, or via social media by sharing this video about the Westside Mobile Food Market.

If you have any question about the mobile market, would like to chat with the organizers, or need additional material (e.g. more copy, photos etc.), please feel welcome to be in touch. If you are interested in volunteering with the Westside Mobile Food Market Plenty Campaign, please contact our volunteer coordinator Merrily Tan at merrilytan@gmail.com.

Contact

Email: gwfcnetwork@gmail.com

Tel: 604-718-5895

Honoring Coast Salish Lands and Water

We recognize that we live and work on unceded Coast Salish land and serve many Indigenous communities who live in our neighbourhood. We believe that those of us who are settlers on this land have a deep responsibility to address colonial systems of power and oppression, most importantly as they impact Indigenous people and their food systems today. It is through this understanding that we are working to develop a decolonization framework through which all our future programs will be planned and implemented.